First a Dunkin Donuts Boycott, Now Their Out of Donuts?

Inspire Brands isn’t faring well first they faced a Dunkin Donuts Boycott and now their customers are unable to purchase the brand’s iconic doughnuts due to a mysterious’ manufacturing error’ that left shelves empty.

On Thursday and Friday, Dunkin Donuts locations in Omaha, Lincoln, and Grand Island, Nebraska, as well as those near Albuquerque, New Mexico, were completely out of doughnuts.

Customers were informed on store doors and drive-thru kiosks that the pastries were unavailable ‘due to a manufacturing error.’

According to The Albuquerque Journal, at least one Albuquerque store attributed the mysterious disappearance of the breakfast staple to a “national recall on all donuts.”

However, several locations in other regions, including St. Joseph, Missouri, and Boston, where Dunkin’ Donuts has a near-cult following, still had the sweet treats available, according to the Associated Press.

Some affected locations served ‘Munchkins,’ or donut holes, instead of doughnuts on Friday.

Several Dunkin Donuts fans were upset and curious about the empty shelves as a result of the pastry’s absence.

Dunkin’ Donuts stores in Omaha, Lincoln, and Grand Island, Nebraska, as well as areas near Albuquerque, New Mexico, did not have donuts in their cases on Thursday and Friday.

Customers were informed on store doors and drive-thru kiosks that the pastries were unavailable ‘due to a manufacturing error.’ At least one Albuquerque store attributed the mysterious disappearance of the breakfast staple to a ‘nationwide recall on all doughnuts’

‘What? ‘No donuts!’ Tyler Raikar, of Ohama, exclaimed as she arrived at her Dunkin’ Donuts early on Friday after an overnight shift as a phlebotomy technician.

Raikar was looking for a coffee and a chocolate cake donut, but she was disappointed that she didn’t get her morning treat.

‘That’s tragic,’ she told Associated Press. ‘Hopefully they will have them soon.’

The Albuquerque Police Department joked with The Journal that they almost cancelled the chief’s monthly meeting due to the shortage.

‘Fortunately, we averted tragedy when Roma Bakery provided breakfast burritos,’ APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos told The Journal.

Some Albuquerque-area employees blamed it on a supply chain issue, while others simply stated that delivery trucks had been arriving without the delicious cargo. Employees said they hoped to have stock replenished by next week.

Jack D’Amato, a spokesperson for Inspire Brands, Dunkin Donuts’ parent company, said there was a problem with doughnuts from a single supplier that affected stores in Nebraska and other states.

The issue affected approximately 4% of Dunkin Donuts US locations.

Bryce Bares, who owns several Dunkin Donuts franchises in Nebraska, stated that some of his stores received subpar products from suppliers and would not serve them to customers. Employees expressed their hope that stocks would be replenished by next week.

D’Amato stated that the company was still investigating the nature of the problem and the number of affected stores. However, he stated that the company has already begun to restock some of the affected stores.

Bryce Bares, who owns several Dunkin Donuts franchises in Nebraska, told The Omaha World-Herald that some of his stores received subpar products from suppliers and would not serve them to customers.

He told the newspaper that the supply partners had fixed the problem and that his Nebraska locations would resume serving doughnuts soon.

Dunkin donuts boycott

In August 2024, MAGA supporters called for a boycott of Dunkin Donuts, sparking online debate and media coverage. The backlash centred on claims that the company’s marketing had a political bias after dropping Steven Crowder.

Critics accused the brand of alienating a portion of its customer base, while others dismissed the outrage as exaggerated. The hashtags supporting or condemning the boycott flooded social media platforms, sparking a polarising debate.

The Dunkin donuts boycott by MAGA supporters and other conservatives spread across online platforms, with one influencer accusing the national coffee chain of refusing to work with him because of his right-wing connections.

The Dunkin boycott began when Rumble CEO Chris Pavlovski tweeted that Dunkin wanted his company to drop Steven Crowder, a conservative talk show host, and move away from ‘right wing culture’. Rumble is a video-sharing platform with a more conservative demographic.

The alleged emails sent by Pavolvski in his tweet include messages from Dunkin, Inspire Brands, and Diageo North America expressing their opposition to appearing on the site because it is “too polarising from a brand sustainability standpoint.”

In the same tweet, Pavolvski responded, “No, we do not discriminate. “All cultures are welcome on Rumble.”

Many Rumble supporters stated that they are prepared to boycott the coffee chain due to their alleged refusal to appear on the platform.

A Twitter user with over two million followers shared an image showing #boycottDunkin trending at number two on X, formerly Twitter. The post received 11,000 retweets and 41,000 likes.

Many of the responses to Pavlovski’s original post supported the idea of a boycott of Dunkin.

The boycott’s trending topic has since faded, at least on social media. As of Monday afternoon, #boycottDunkin is no longer trending on X, and it is not one of the Top 100 trends on Tiktok.